USA vs Vietnam LIVE: USWNT win 3-0 as Sophia Smith nets twice in Women’s World Cup opener
The USA are aiming to win the World Cup for the third time in a row in what is Megan Rapinoe’s final tournament
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Your support makes all the difference.Sophia Smith scored a first-half brace on her Women’s World Cup debut as the United States got their bid for a third successive title off to a comfortable start with a 3-0 win over Vietnam at Eden Park on Saturday.
The top-ranked Americans have put their trust in the next generation this year and were rewarded with a showstopping performance from the 22-year-old forward, who also provided the assist for co-captain Lindsey Horan’s goal in the second half.
Vietnam were scarcely able to breach the final third on their World Cup debut but goalkeeper Tran Thi Kim Thanh dived to her right to save Alex Morgan’s first-half penalty in one of several good chances the U.S. spurned.
The heavily American presence in the crowd of 41,107 roared with pleasure as Megan Rapinoe, who plans to retire at the end of this year, took the field midway through the second half but the 38-year-old also missed a good scoring chance.
The U.S. next face the Netherlands on Thursday in their second Group E game, a rematch of the 2019 World Cup final,
Follow live updates as the USA begin their Women’s World Cup campaign.
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
The battle for the Women’s World Cup is underway, but the contest for the best kit at the tournament has never been stronger.
The biggest ever Women’s World Cup means there are more new shirts to dive into than ever before, while Nike and Adidas have taken their creative experimentation process to another level in Australia and New Zealand.
Like in 2019, the Women’s World Cup features a host of unique designs - with Adidas unveiling a selection of nature-themed kits and Nike taking inspiration from various artistic movements. The results are wild.
Here are the Women’s World Cup 2023 kits, ranked and rated from worst to best:
Every Women’s World Cup kit ranked and rated
From England and Australia to the United States and Germany, here is every kit at the Women’s World Cup ranked and rated from worst to best
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
Megan Rapinoe, 38, burst onto the global stage at the 2011 World Cup in Germany when she scored a screamer against Colombia and celebrated by grabbing an on-field microphone placed near the corner flag and crooning Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA”. A star was born.
Since then, the iconic neon-haired winger has won gold at the London 2012 Olympics, bronze at the Tokyo 2020 games and both the 2015 and 2019 FIFA World Cups as an integral part of the US Women’s National Team (USWNT).
She was named player of the tournament at her last World Cup in France four years ago after scoring six – including a spotkick in the final against the Netherlands – and picked up both the Golden Boot and that year’s Ballon d’Or Feminin.
Megan Rapinoe: The legendary US attacker and LGBT+ rights activist in profile
An icon of the women’s game, the USWNT winger will retire at the end of the season
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
USA striker Alex Morgan, 34, is one of the biggest stars in women’s football, already an Olympic gold medallist and a two-time World Cup winner.
The American is heading into her fourth FIFA Women’s World Cup and ranks in the top 10 in USWNT history in goals, assists and multi-goal games.
Morgan first caught the eye a decade ago at the 2011 World Cup in Germany when she was the youngest player in the American squad but, undaunted by the international spotlight, scored in both the semi-final and final as the US finished runners-up to Japan.
Since then, she has gone from strength to strength, shrugging off her old nickname of “Baby Horse” to be described as a “full-on stallion” by her international teammate Megan Rapinoe.
Who is USWNT striker Alex Morgan?
San Diego Wave forward burst onto the scene at the 2011 World Cup and has since become an icon of the women’s game
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
USA striker Trinity Rodman is seeking to introduce herself on the international stage in Australia and New Zealand after making swift progress at domestic level playing for Washington Spirit, scoring 13 goals in 47 appearances since making her debut in 2021.
She will also be seeking to emerge from the long shadow cast by her famous father, Dennis Rodman, one of basketball’s greatest and most eccentric stars who was pivotal to the success of the “Bad Boy”-era Detroit Pistons and to Michael Jordan’s dominant Chicago Bulls team of the 1990s.
The star has largely been a remote figure in his daughter’s life as she was raised by her mother Michelle Moyer but Rodman has said she learned the importance of being reactive from watching clips of his performances on the court.
Are the United States still the team to beat at the Women’s World Cup?
Group E preview: The defending champions are trying to become the first team in history to win three World Cups in a row, but has Europe caught up?
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
What are their chances?
No other team comes close to the USA’s history in the World Cup. With titles in 1991, 1999, 2015 and 2019, they are looking to become the first country ever to win three World Cups in a row, men’s or women’s. As always, the expectation will be high. The US has the biggest following of any team at the tournament and anything less than a fifth World Cup will be considered to be a huge disappointment. The rise of the leading European teams, England, Spain, France and Germany, means the competition has never been greater.
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
The coach
Vlatko Andonovski took over from Jill Ellis following the 2019 World Cup, faced with the task of taking a winning yet ageing team and transforming the squad. Perhaps there were always going to be bumps in the road and the 3-0 defeat to Sweden at the 2021 Olympics, which ended the team’s 44-match unbeaten run, was a sign of the challenge the Macedonian-American faces. Injuries before the World Cup have not helped.
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
Key player
Alex Morgan, the face of the US team and joint top scorer in France four years ago, is back for her fourth World Cup, arguably better than ever. Since helping the US to back-to-back titles, Morgan has given birth to her first child and at 33 is still scoring regularly in the NWSL. With forwards Mallory Swanson and Catarina Macario, who would have competed for Morgan’s place in the side, out due to injury, the USA need their leader more than ever.
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
United States
Confirmed squad
Goalkeepers: Aubrey Kingsbury (Washington Spirit), Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars)
Defenders: Alana Cook (OL Reign), Crystal Dunn (Portland Thorns), Emily Fox (North Carolina Courage), Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave), Sofia Huerta (OL Reign), Kelley O’Hara (NJ/NY Gotham FC), Emily Sonnett (OL Reign)
Midfielders: Savannah DeMelo (Racing Louisville), Julie Ertz (Angel City), Lindsey Horan (Lyon), Rose Lavelle (OL Reign), Kristie Mewis (NJ/NY Gotham), Ashley Sanchez (Washington Spirit), Andi Sullivan (Washington Spirit)
Forwards: Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave), Megan Rapinoe (OL Reign), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City), Lynn Williams (NJ/NY Gotham)
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
The United States kick off their World Cup campaign against Vietnam on Saturday in a tournament that will prove the ultimate test of head coach Vlatko Andonovski’s tenure.
The Americans enjoyed tremendous success under previous manager Jill Ellis, who led the team to their third and fourth titles in 2015 and 2019. She may prove a tough act to follow.
No country has ever won three straight World Cups but U.S. fans will accept nothing less from the world’s top-ranked side.
“When I took this job four years ago, it wasn’t unknown what the expectations are,” said Andonovski, who accepted the post months after the U.S. beat the Netherlands in the 2019 final.
“I was very well aware of it and I was aware of the pressure of the job and I embraced it and it helped me. It helped me in the preparation because the pressure turned into excitement.”
Women’s World Cup: USA vs Vietnam
If you’ve won the past two World Cups, it seems fair to go into the next tournament with confidence. Naturally, the USA are comfortable in such a position. “Good luck with that,” Alex Morgan says in a pre-World Cup advert which centres around the topic of ‘how the rest of the world can stop the USA’. The four-time champions head into Australia and New Zealand on a high having formally signed their historic equal pay agreement last year - they filed their discrimination lawsuit against US Soccer before the previous World Cup in 2019. On the pitch, for the past eight years they’ve been the best, and they know it.
But for how much longer? That will really be the defining question of this World Cup.
Are the United States still the team to beat at the Women’s World Cup?
Group E preview: The defending champions are trying to become the first team in history to win three World Cups in a row, but has Europe caught up?
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